UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - 2021-01-30 UPDATE

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Max_P0
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Max_P0 »

Thanks for the update, and stay safe :)
shadestreet
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by shadestreet »

Please tell me you guys are still accepting orders, and if so, how to join. Signed up here only after learning of this thread today (been searching how to get UltraHDMI for n64 past week). Possible?
Blayze
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Blayze »

I want to order a kit .. is the price still the same? and do you accept separate payments over time? like if i pay full for the kit and pay later for installation fees and mini hdmi at a later day before you submit the order..
Icelvlan
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Icelvlan »

Sorry on the last post.

Are there any plans to being able to adapt the RGB output bore to V1 hardware?

I’d imagine the code is fairly similar in V2.

Even if there is some fine soldering required since there isent a ribbon connector, it should be a simple mod to do.
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Ichinisan
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Ichinisan »

Icelvlan wrote:Sorry on the last post.

Are there any plans to being able to adapt the RGB output bore to V1 hardware?

I’d imagine the code is fairly similar in V2.

Even if there is some fine soldering required since there isent a ribbon connector, it should be a simple mod to do.
I suspect the PCB components are basically the same other than the layout and the added connector, so it may be possible to hack a RetroActive DAC module onto an UltraHDMI HW1. That said, I don't know if the old board gives you access to all the traces you'd need to connect the DAC (there are probably some inaccessible pins underneath the FPGA chip). Also there are some one-time-programmable identifiers that would prevent an HW1 board from running the HW2 firmware.

It's probably more trouble than it's worth to hack-in the RetroActive DAC. The better option is to swap the resistor array near the UltraHDMI's flat cable connection with 0-ohm resistors (jumpers) and use Borti's modified flat cable (which has the resistors on the cable). That would allow Borti's N64 Advanced RGB mod to coexist with UltraHDMI HW1. Still, it's risky to start desoldering tiny components from an UltraHDMI board.
Icelvlan
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Icelvlan »

This is what I thought. Would be cool if Marshall thought of a cool solution.
nmalinoski
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by nmalinoski »

Icelvlan wrote:This is what I thought. Would be cool if Marshall thought of a cool solution.
Like a trade-in program? :P
Termina
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Termina »

Just out of curiosity, does the installation include replacing the capacitors? If not, is that something you'd be willing to do for a little extra? Thanks!

EDIT: He got back via e-mail and does this for $10 which is awesome. Thanks for the quick response!
Last edited by Termina on Wed Feb 19, 2020 3:24 am, edited 1 time in total.
SaiPlyus
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by SaiPlyus »

I emailed a request to be added to the list.
Thanks for the potential opportunity to own a kit.
philthebest
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by philthebest »

Sent a email, lmk
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Ichinisan
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Ichinisan »

Hey, everyone. I just tweaked the OP extensively since it was missing a lot of the info specific to round 7.

I tried to list all the order / production status updates at the end:

2019-11-04
Marshall made a small test batch of HW2 units back in September. He allowed me to purchase his remaining kits from that batch. Marshall said many of them will be dead-on-arrival. I believe PCB failures are expected because the factory in China does not perform a robotic test of each point on the PCB for a small production run such as this. I always test each unit, so I will identify DOA boards and RetroActive will compensate with replacements from a future production run. I should receive quite a bit more units than I previously implied, but I want to temper expectations until I know how many are DOA. I do expect to receive several dozen kits. Once I receive them, I will perform installs on various systems and provide feedback to Marshall before he does a full production run.

[update]
After I purchased the remaining units from Marshall's test production in September, he ordered some DAC modules to include. There were some delays as they were stuck in customs, but now he has them and he's waiting for the flex PCBs (carries analog signals from DAC module to N64's AV multi-out connector).

2019-12-31
In addition to the units made in September, Marshall also contacted me just hours before my December 31 flight and allowed me to purchase 150 more units. With such a limited quantity, it seems like he's doing another very small test batch and isn't ready to do a full production batch quite yet.

JANUARY 2020
While in Thailand, I had a chat with Marshall. He said production around this time of year is always be delayed due to Chinese / lunar new year celebration but he expects that production will start in early February.

LATE FEBRUARY 2020
I'm back from my international trip after 1.5 months in Thailand + Malaysia and getting settled at home. There are a lot of packages to go through. I chatted with Marshall a few nights ago. He's still waiting for flex cables to go with the "test" kits from September. Factories that are currently running only offer limited services at the moment. PCBWay is only doing 2-sided PCBs and no assembly at all. They should be able to start producing the flex PCBs soon and I should receive the September test units soon after. For the 150 additional units purchased December 31, the virus outbreak in China will definitely delay production. I don't think anyone can really guess how long. Marshall said the factory has a third-party handling their email and their estimates seem too optimistic based on what he hears from business contacts in China. He shared the most recent email from the factory regarding PCB production and PCB assembly:
Hi , Marshall:
The PCB department of the factory has started to work, but now the delivery date will be a little slower than before.
The PCBA department is expected to work next week
Marshall also said this about an upcoming firmware feature:
when you left i was playing around with a way to reverse VI filtering on some games. that unfortunately did not end up being feasible
so i am adding hard interpolation to sharp pixel mode (where it looks sharp but still filters to prevent stairstepping)
Last edited by Ichinisan on Fri Feb 28, 2020 1:08 am, edited 2 times in total.
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Ichinisan
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Ichinisan »

I'm behind on emails and messages (especially Reddit), but I will try to catch up tonight.
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Dax
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Dax »

It looks like the virus outbreak will really slow production, which is a shame. This definitely has to be the longest wait for a round yet! Seems like there's not much we can do, though.
neorichieb1971
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by neorichieb1971 »

I sent a PM to Ichinisan a quite a while ago and no response.

So I will ask here -

If I send my N64 to Ichinisan what are the installation costs?
This industry has become 2 dimensional as it transcended into a 3D world.
nmalinoski
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by nmalinoski »

neorichieb1971 wrote:I sent a PM to Ichinisan a quite a while ago and no response.

So I will ask here -

If I send my N64 to Ichinisan what are the installation costs?
There's a Pricing section in the first post of this thread.
antiemp
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by antiemp »

Ichinisan wrote:I'm behind on emails and messages (especially Reddit), but I will try to catch up tonight.
No worries, stay safe! Thank you for all the work you are doing for this group buy.
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Simoncino
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Simoncino »

Hello,
i am awaiting like others my N64.. Have you any news ?

Thanks.
Zonta85
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Zonta85 »

Ichinisan wrote:I'm behind on emails and messages (especially Reddit), but I will try to catch up tonight.
Hi man,i want to jump in!
I sent you an email with all the info that you've requested, i want to jump in for two kit plus installation, but living in Italy to avoid extra shipping costs i've asked you to provide two basic/loose NTSC n64, i don't need cables or power adapter.

let me know something :)
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Ichinisan
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Ichinisan »

I asked Marshall a couple days ago if he has heard anything new from the factory. He responded quickly, but his response was brief:

"everything in production"

That should include the secondary (analog) flex PCB for the UltraHDMI kits I ordered in November (several dozen units manufactured in September test run), and the 150 units ordered December 31.
Simoncino wrote:Hello,
i am awaiting like others my N64.. Have you any news ?

Thanks.
Zonta85 wrote:Hi man,i want to jump in!
I sent you an email with all the info that you've requested, i want to jump in for two kit plus installation, but living in Italy to avoid extra shipping costs i've asked you to provide two basic/loose NTSC n64, i don't need cables or power adapter.

let me know something :)
I'm behind on email again. Catching up now...
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Dax
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Dax »

Ichinisan wrote:I asked Marshall a couple days ago if he has heard anything new from the factory. He responded quickly, but his response was brief:

"everything in production"

That should include the secondary (analog) flex PCB for the UltraHDMI kits I ordered in November (several dozen units manufactured in September test run), and the 150 units ordered December 31.
Awesome! Thank you so much for the update, dude! Exciting to hear things are still moving along.
Zonta85
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Zonta85 »

Ichinisan wrote:
Zonta85 wrote:Hi man,i want to jump in!
I sent you an email with all the info that you've requested, i want to jump in for two kit plus installation, but living in Italy to avoid extra shipping costs i've asked you to provide two basic/loose NTSC n64, i don't need cables or power adapter.

let me know something :)
I'm behind on email again. Catching up now...
Thanks man, I'll wait your news :)
hawse771
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by hawse771 »

Hello,

I signed up to join the group buy and sent you an email. Let me know if you need anything else to process.

Thanks!
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Socalju
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Socalju »

Email has been sent. Thank you again, Ju
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Simoncino
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Simoncino »

Ichinisan wrote:I asked Marshall a couple days ago if he has heard anything new from the factory. He responded quickly, but his response was brief:

"everything in production"

That should include the secondary (analog) flex PCB for the UltraHDMI kits I ordered in November (several dozen units manufactured in September test run), and the 150 units ordered December 31.
Simoncino wrote:Hello,
i am awaiting like others my N64.. Have you any news ?

Thanks.
Zonta85 wrote:Hi man,i want to jump in!
I sent you an email with all the info that you've requested, i want to jump in for two kit plus installation, but living in Italy to avoid extra shipping costs i've asked you to provide two basic/loose NTSC n64, i don't need cables or power adapter.

let me know something :)
I'm behind on email again. Catching up now...
Hello back. That sounds good..
Hope you receive kits soon..

How is situation in USA of coronavirus?
I hope you are ok.. thanks

Inviato dal mio SM-G973F utilizzando Tapatalk
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Ichinisan
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Ichinisan »

Small update.

A few weeks ago, Marshall (RetroActive) confirmed that flex PCBs are finally on the way to him from the factory in China. These are the secondary flex PCBs (for carrying analog signals from DAC to the AV multi-out). If I understand correctly, Marshall had to make a small revision to this flex after doing the test production in September. These will be paired with those UltraHDMI HW2 boards from September and sent to me (several dozen units).

I checked with Marshall again several days ago and he said they are still "en route." The DAC modules in December took a really long time (delayed by Customs, if I recall correctly).

He also said the factory in China is still working through their backlog. Production of 150 units (December 31 order) should proceed very soon.

He's still working to schedule production with a Taiwanese manufacturer to do a full-size production run. US tariffs on products made in China have caused a lot of companies to move production to Taiwan, so it is difficult to compete for time on a production schedule. That will change when Taiwanese PCBA factories respond to increased demand by increasing their production capacity (soon). Currently, other PCB assembly alternatives have issues with capability, quality, and sourcing components.
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Dax
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Dax »

Ichinisan wrote:Small update.

A few weeks ago, Marshall (RetroActive) confirmed that flex PCBs are finally on the way to him from the factory in China. These are the secondary flex PCBs (for carrying analog signals from DAC to the AV multi-out). If I understand correctly, Marshall had to make a small revision to this flex after doing the test production in September. These will be paired with those UltraHDMI HW2 boards from September and sent to me (several dozen units).

I checked with Marshall again several days ago and he said they are still "en route." The DAC modules in December took a really long time (delayed by Customs, if I recall correctly).

He also said the factory in China is still working through their backlog. Production of 150 units (December 31 order) should proceed very soon.

He's still working to schedule production with a Taiwanese manufacturer to do a full-size production run. US tariffs on products made in China have caused a lot of companies to move production to Taiwan, so it is difficult to compete for time on a production schedule. That will change when Taiwanese PCBA factories respond to increased demand by increasing their production capacity (soon). Currently, other PCB assembly alternatives have issues with capability, quality, and sourcing components.
That is positively fantastic to hear! A great progress update, it sounds like things are getting closer. Hopefully they arrive to Marshall and subsequently to you very soon!

Hope you're still staying safe, dude.
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Simoncino
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Simoncino »

great. we will wait @ichinasan
Drunk_Caterpillar
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Drunk_Caterpillar »

Sorry if this has been mentioned, but is the UltraHDMI firmware still in development? Deinterlacing seems really spotty on a few games that I've tried it with. Also, kinda curious if it's possible to implement a 240p output over HDMI.
strayan
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by strayan »

Drunk_Caterpillar wrote:Sorry if this has been mentioned, but is the UltraHDMI firmware still in development? Deinterlacing seems really spotty on a few games that I've tried it with. Also, kinda curious if it's possible to implement a 240p output over HDMI.
viewtopic.php?p=1395931#p1395931
Drunk_Caterpillar
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Re: UltraHDMI group-buy ROUND 7 - accepting participants

Post by Drunk_Caterpillar »

strayan wrote:
Drunk_Caterpillar wrote:Sorry if this has been mentioned, but is the UltraHDMI firmware still in development? Deinterlacing seems really spotty on a few games that I've tried it with. Also, kinda curious if it's possible to implement a 240p output over HDMI.
viewtopic.php?p=1395931#p1395931
Thanks for the help. Good to know!

The reason I brought it up is that I think the smooth scaling on the RetroTink2x looks pretty good, and I would wager that the OSSC Pro will have something similar. Seeing as it has an HDMI input, I imagined a scenario where I could feed my UltraHDMI at 240p in to the OSSC Pro to get a smoothed 1080p image out of the combination of the two. Problem is that I don't think you can smooth out content that has already been line doubled.

I wonder if RetroTink-style smoothing could be done internally on the UltraHDMI... I mean, it's still the N64 so it'd kinda be like making a silk purse out of a sow's ear, but it's still an improvement some of the time.
Last edited by Drunk_Caterpillar on Fri Aug 14, 2020 6:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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